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2017-05-10

FBI James Comey, You are fired!

FBI director James Comey has been fired by Donald Trump,
who said in a letter that he was being “terminated
and removed” because he was “not able to
effectively lead the bureau”.

The sacking came after attorney general Jeff Sessions and deputy
attorney general Rod Rosenstein recommended to Trump that he be removedover his handling
of the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

However, critics believe the dismissal is more closely linked to Comey’s
role in investigating Trump’s allies over alleged
links to Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Comey reportedly found out he had been fired while speaking to FBI employees in Los Angeles
and initially thought it was a prank.

The controversial move has been condemned by Democrats, many of whom
said the sacking was “Nixonian” and some
high profile Republicans including Trump supporters.

Justin Amash, a Republican
congressman from Michigan said he was reviewing legislation to establish an
independent commission on Russia in the
wake of the news.

Richard Burr, a Republican
leading the Senate intelligence committee investigation into Russia’s influence
over the 2016 presidential election, said he was “troubled
by the timing and reasoning” of the decision.

Chuck Schumer, Democratic
minority leader in the Senate, said he told Trump he was “making a very big
mistake.”

Meanwhile, a CNN report claims that a grand jury has been convened and
has started issuing subpoenas relating to the FBI’s Russia probe. The development,
if confirmed suggests the investigation has entered
a new phase.

The decision to fire Comey has caused the
dollar to slip on foreign exchange markets overnight. The dollar index,
which investors use to track the greenback against six other currencies, dropped
0.2%.

Trump himself has only commented once since the story broke, using his
personal and presidential Twitter accounts to attack
Chuck Schumer’s stance on Comey.

The president is due to meet Russian foreign
minister Sergey Lavrov at the White House on Wednesday.

It is not known who will replace Comey. Deputy FBI director Andrew McCabe has
been made acting director until a new bureau head is selected. Rudy Guiliani, spotted at Trump’s hotel in DC on Tuesday night,
has said he is not in the running.